MANILA - (UPDATED) A Caloocan court has issued a warrant of arrest against three policemen charged with murder over the killing teenage drug suspect Kian delos Santos last year, authorities said Wednesday.

Caloocan City RTC branch 125, naglabas na ng warrant of arrest laban sa 3 pulis na sangkot sa pagpatay sa teenager na si Kian Delos Santos @DZMMTeleRadyo

— Joyce Balancio (@joycebalancio) February 7, 2018

Delos Santos' death, allegedly at the hands of police officers Arnel Oares, Jeremias Pereda and Jerwin Cruz sparked public outrage against the government's war on drugs.

• Police say Kian was killed before drug links known
• Murder, torture raps filed vs cops in Kian's killing

The warrant will be served on the three at the National Capitol Region Police Office holding in Taguig City, where they are assigned, said Sheriff Darwin Trinidad of the Caloocan Trial Court Branch 125.

The court also issued an arrest warrant against Renato Perez Loveras, the police asset who claimed Delos Santos was dealing drugs. Loveras was also seen with the tree policemen in CCTV footage.

The three police officers, who were posted in Caloocan police station 7, were part of an anti-illegal drugs police operation that allegedly led to the killing of Delos Santos.

They initially said the Grade 11 student violently resisted arrest. But CCTV footage and witnesses' accounts cast doubt on their claim.

Oares and Pereda later admitted that they were the men shown in CCTV footage dragging Delos Santos to the spot where he was killed.

Cruz, however, denied this and said it was not the teenager they were dragging, but a police asset.

--report by Joyce Balancio, ABS-CBN News